Mavericks star Luka Doncic will represent Slovenia next summer at the FIBA World Cup, according to Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Doncic has become a regular in international competitions, so the news isn’t surprising, but it was made official by Basketball Federation of Slovenia president Matej Erjavec.
“Luka confirmed his participation a minute after the game with Germany, when it was certain that we would go to the championship,” Erjavec said in an interview with RTV, the country’s national public broadcaster. “To be very honest, we were actually 99% sure already after the game against Israel and even then, it was a great joy and a reassurance at the same time. If Luka is healthy, there is no fear at all.”
Doncic has played for the national team since 2017 when Slovenia won the gold medal at EuroBasket, and he was a standout at the most recent Olympics. The 32-team World Cup will take place from August 25 to September 10 in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.
“The club, led by coach Jason Kidd and owner Mark Cuban, approves of this approach,” Erjavec added. “They approve of his participation.”
There’s more from Dallas:
- Spencer Dinwiddie dislocated his left shoulder late in Sunday’s game, but he doesn’t believe the injury is serious, writes Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News. Dinwiddie got hurt when Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. collided with him on a steal attempt. He collapsed to the court in pain and had to leave the game, but felt OK in the locker room, Caplan adds. “It just popped out,” Dinwiddie said. “It’s back in. It’s all good.”
- After logging 17 minutes off the bench Sunday, including just 1:54 in the fourth quarter, Christian Wood expressed frustration about his inconsistent playing time, Caplan tweets. Wood, who expected to have a regular role after being acquired from the Rockets in an offseason trade, said the coaching staff doesn’t give him an indication each night about how many minutes to expect. “I would love to play more,” he said. “I’ve voiced that several times, but I just play my role.”
- Maxi Kleber remains sidelined with a lower back contusion, but there’s optimism that he can return soon, tweets Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. Kidd hopes Kleber can resume practicing on Tuesday and join the team for its upcoming road trip.
As a Mavs fan I’m so pissed with Coach Kidd. Loved him this past year but hate him this one. Bertans should NOT be getting minutes over Wood, I don’t care how many points he dropped
It’s a double edge sword, wood will get you 20-10 with ease if he starts….. but he’ll also concede double that with his poor D. To start him you need a good Defensive 4. I’d start Powell at PF and have them interchange on D.
They’re desperate for a 2nd offensive star, lukas stats would deffo drop a lot once his 99.999999% usage is lowered, but they’ll probably contend.
@JW91 I agree with you, but you lost me at Powell. In my opinion start Dorian Finney Smith (probably the most underrated defending forward in the league, or at least one of them) at the 4, Reggie Bullock at the 3, Josh Green at the 2 and of course Luka at the one. Wood at 5. Powell tends to get lazy on defense and would not be able to guard any teams best or second best player, whereas Reggie and Doe and even Josh can do that.
I agree that we need a second star. In my opinion we’re in the tier of “If everything goes perfectly” meaning we’re not quite there but you never know (cuz Luka is Luka). I think extending Wood is the right move and then waiting until 2024 and go after Jaylen Brown. Wood is not good enough to be the second best player on a contender, but he’s too good to be the third best which means Id put him as part of a big 3, just the worst one in the group. (Ex: DeAndre Ayton) Luka, JB and Wood is a crazy big 3 and that’s for sure a favorite to win it all, especially if we can keep Doe around and get some complimentary pieces around the 3 stars.
Dallas has too many shooters that are inconsistent. They should look to trade hardaway for picks and give his minutes to green and wood.
Luka is going to break down before he is 30. Europe is over dependent on him to generate everything.
You can’t play high level basketball and even higher, more intense hoops over seas before it all breaks down.
Have you heard of a guy named Giannis Antetokounmpo?
Dislocated his shoulder on a steal attempt that wasn’t called a foul in a 4 point game that lead to a loose ball steal.
So many mistakes by the refs in the loss.
Wood should be starting at C imo.